


Open your eyes, would you?

by kroosista



Category: Football RPF
Genre: M/M, Real Madrid CF
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-04-01 22:22:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4036678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kroosista/pseuds/kroosista
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Toni doesn’t know how it started but all he knows is that, every time he sees Cristiano hugging James, he sees red.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blindly stupid...

Toni doesn’t know how it started but all he knows is that, every time he sees Cristiano hugging James, he sees red.  
  
In a game, at training, when they’re leaving Valdebebas… every single time. No, actually he knows how it all started.  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
One day while they were training, James went to the usual rondo, but Cristiano pushed him away.  
  
“No, James, you have to go to the other group”  
  
“But I always train with this group…”  
  
“Well, not today. They need another player and we don’t. So, go there”  
  
James nodded while trying to smile, but it didn’t quite work. Toni watched the exchange catching some words but not all of them. In times like this he needed a better level of Spanish. James came and stayed by his side with a timid smile on his face.  
  
“You okay?” That was it. The only thing he could remember how to pronounce…  
  
“Yeah, thanks.”  
  
But the smile didn’t reach his eyes. Toni wanted to murder Cristiano. Honestly, at least throw a free kick to the back of his head so he can suffer a little. It wasn’t necessary to make James miserable just to choose a team partner in a rondo. Cris knew that. But he still did it, and even if he liked Cristiano (especially since he spoke English and Toni could understand him perfectly) at the moment he wasn’t his favorite person on Earth…  
  
“Hey, James. Are you mad with me?” Cristiano came and put an arm around James’ shoulders while flashing him a big-ass smile.  
  
“No, Cris. I’m not. Why should I?”  
  
“Oh, come on, Jamesito. I was just making a point. We were 10, they were 9. They needed another one. But Fabio is willing to come here so you can train with us. Don’t be sad!”  
  
James smiled and Toni couldn’t believe that he could forgive him so easily. Fabio came trotting to this group and James went with Cristiano laughing softly. Toni frowned.  
  
“Hey, if you keep that expression, you’ll get wrinkles, Germany” Luka said with a smile. Toni smiled back. Luka always remembered to talk to him in English and if he saw Toni trying to understand something the others have said, he translated for him. He really liked Luka.  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
Since that moment, he started to really pay attention to James. Especially his smile. That brilliant, huge smile that made him sparkle. But every time he saw him, with his arms around Cristiano, he saw red. Like the shirt from his last team, Bayern, just all red.  
  
Cristiano even made that celebration with James and Marcelo. The Colombian celebration with a song he couldn’t even try to sing without his tongue getting twisted. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t normal.  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
Sami was seated with him on the way to the first leg of the Champions League against Atletico Madrid. Again. Even if Sami wasn’t going to play today, he went with the team to El Calderon to support them. James, of course, had been offered to seat with the mighty Cristiano Ronaldo and he didn’t lose that opportunity. Toni was sulking in his seat. Yeah he was. _Not that he was going to admit it to anyone_ , but he was.  
  
Sami then punched him in the shoulder making him lose one of his earphones.  
  
“What the hell, Sami?” if there was a time to shout in German, this was it.  
  
“I’ve been trying to catch your attention and probably save Cris’s head from exploding and you aren’t even listening to me!” Toni didn’t even bother to move his eyes from the back of Cristiano’s head who was currently laughing with James. “Toni! For God’s sake! If you want to have something with the little Colombian, you must tell him”  
  
“What are you talking about, Sami? You are ridiculous, you know that, right?”  
  
“You know what? Keep in denial, whatever. Don’t go crying afterwards”  
  
Toni just glared at the man and put his earphones back on. Not even Olly Murs could keep him out of his head today. Yeah, Sami was right, he was kind of mad at Cristiano. He couldn’t even deny it.  
  
They played a really good game at Atletico’s house but it was still a 0-0 draw that left them unsatisfied and even if they were happy about the style of play, the result was awful. While they were in the dressing rooms, Cristiano seated beside Toni (they were ordered by their shirt’s numbers).  
  
“Even if we didn’t win… that was one hell of a game”  
  
“Yeah, I guess it was” was all Toni answered making even Benzema look at him in a weird way.  
  
“You guess? Come on, Germany! It was awesome. You and Luka make a great team in midfield. It’s too bad we couldn’t score but, we’ll win at home” Toni didn’t answer this time just smiled and nodded. Karim looked at both of them and saw how awkward it looked.  
  
“Cris, can you please shut up for like two seconds and then finish dressing so we can all go home? You can’t stop talking! You’re lucky it was Germany over here and not Sergio listening to you”  
  
Cristiano just laughed at Karim and went to take a shower. Toni looked at the Frenchman and he just winked while announcing he had to talk with the Mister about something.  
  
Toni sighed and tied his shoes to go to the bus. Sami passed by his side and smiled at him.  
  
“Sami, where are you going?”  
  
“Since you ignored me on the way here, I’m sitting with the others at the back. Sorry, Toni”  
  
“But…”  
  
“You’ll be fine in your little Olly Murs bubble.”  
  
Toni glared at him again, especially when Sami ruffled his hair. He was going to make the trip to the Bernabeu all by himself then, fine.  
  
When he was actually falling asleep thanks to the music (because contrary to Sami’s beliefs, Toni had different kinds of music in his iPod, not just Olly Murs, thank you very much) someone poked him on the shoulder making him open his eyes and stare at James’ smile in front of him.  
  
“Do you mind if I sit here?”  
  
“I thought you were sharing the trip with Cris…”  
  
“I was, but then he and Fabio started cursing in Portuguese and I didn’t understand a word. So, I thought I would leave them alone and come here to bother you a little… you don’t mind, do you?” James was blushing a little after his little speech. Even when now Toni understood better Spanish, James still talked slowly so he could understand everything.  
  
“You don’t bother me at all. I was just…”  
  
“Drooling all over the window?” James teased him with a smile.  
  
“Shut up, coffee bean!” James laughed out loud “I wasn’t drooling. I’m just tired”  
  
“You must be” They were quiet for a little while but James couldn’t be quiet and still for longer “What were you listening to?”  
  
“Um… nothing special”  
  
“Olly Murs again?”  
  
“Actually, no. I was tired so I put something different. Wanna listen?”  
  
“Yeah” so Toni lend him an earphone and Beethoven came rushing out of the iPod. Toni smiled and James was kind of shocked. “Wow, I would have never put you as a classical music enthusiast”  
  
“It helps me calm down after a game. You never tried that?”  
  
“Not at all. Maybe will do it from now on”  
  
Toni smiled even more and then stayed quiet for a while, just enjoying the music and the company. He didn’t even realize he had fallen asleep until the coach shook him softly.  
  
“Hey, Kroos. We just got here. Come on! And wake up Rodriguez, please. He’s probably drooling in your shirt”  
  
Toni looked down and saw James sleeping with his head on his shoulder. He smiled.  
  
“James. We are here. Come on, wake up”  
  
James jumped out of his seat and put his hand on his mouth checking for drool there making Toni laugh.  
  
“Don’t laugh, Germany!” James said even when he was also laughing.  
  
“Rodriguez! Come on, man! We’re waiting for you!” Cristiano’s voice resonated in the bus and Toni remembered he was still mad with him.  
  
“Go, James. They’re waiting. _He’s_ waiting”  
  
“See you tomorrow at training, then”  
  
James left with a smile on his face and Toni sighed and went to pick up his car and go home. He was walking in the parking lot when he saw Cristiano laughing and hugging James at the other side of the lot. _Damn it_. So, that’s it.  
  
He couldn’t sleep that well that night and he blamed Cristiano and his _“We’re waiting for you, Rodriguez”_ with his stupid white teeth and his stupid _‘s’_ sounds…  
  
The next day at training, Cristiano tried to make him go running with him, but he declined because, honestly, seeing how angry he was, he could very well make the man trip and they would lose not only the Champions League but La Liga as well.  
  
So, he just kept avoiding the Portuguese as the plague. While James kept sending him timid smiles and waves. Karim, Gareth, Luka and Sami kept looking at him with knowing smiles and he just ignored them.  
  
At their next weekend game, Toni avoided Cristiano on and off the pitch. They were playing against Malaga, and Toni didn’t even send that many passes towards Cristiano. _He was angry, okay._  
  
When they were done, Cristiano looked at him at the dressing room and smiled while shaking his head. It was like he knew something not even Toni knew. It was ridiculous. Isco came and put his arm around Toni’s shoulders while laughing.  
  
“You need a shower!” Toni shoved him aside with a smile.  
  
“You need to change your face!” Toni punched him in the arm “It’s your fault, Germany. You started it”  
  
“You seriously need to shower, Isco. I’m serious”  
  
“And you need to stop this stupidity with Cris.” Toni stared at him “Come on, we all can see you’re mad at him. Just stop it already, okay? Before Wednesday, please”  
  
Toni sighed and Isco ruffled his hair playfully “Stop messing with my hair, Francisco!” Isco laughed and ran away “And take a shower, now!”  
  
Toni heard James stutter even worse than normal and looked his way to see Cristiano laughing and whispering something to him. Toni looked away again. He didn’t want to see them so extremely excited with each other.  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
James kept looking at him while they were training. At lunch in Valdebebas. When they were going away. Until the day before the Atletico return game that James went up to him while he was opening his car to go home.  
  
“Um… Toni?”  
  
“Hey, James. What’s up?”  
  
“I was just wondering if you could send me some songs for my iPod. You know, like the one we were listening the other day.”  
  
“Right now?” James blushed even more and Toni could see he was kind of ashamed of asking him “I can do something better. Here” Toni handled him his iPod “There you go, you can return it tomorrow after the game”  
  
“What about you?”  
  
“I’ll grab the one I leave at home all the time. Don’t worry about it. Enjoy the music today and let me know your favorites tomorrow so I can send them through my computer”  
  
“Thanks, Toni. I’ll see you tomorrow then.”  
  
Toni smiled and went into his car while James jogged back to his. Toni shook his head while he smiled. James was so innocent it was ridiculous. When he was going out of the parking lot, he saw James waving at him so he stopped and let him catch up.  
  
“It’s only fair that, if I take your iPod, you take mine. Sorry for you there’s a lot of Colombian songs in there. But hey! Maybe they’ll help you with your Spanish even more”  
  
Toni smiled and James went running away toward his car. James had a point. Pretty much all the songs there where Colombian and that weird funk James kept listening to all the time. But it was part of him. So he didn’t mind, even if he didn’t understand several words.  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
Toni kept listening to the songs in James’ iPod through the night. He even remembered one from the World Cup in Brazil. The one they kept dancing every time they scored. He kept exploring that iPod and those songs the next day when, being distracted, he collided with Cristiano on the way to the residency for the meet-up of the team.  
  
“Hello there, Germany”  
  
“Hello, Cristiano”  
  
“You still mad at me, Germany?”  
  
“I’m not mad.”  
  
“Yeah, right. Every time I’m joking with James, you get this look on your face…”  
  
“What look?”  
  
“Like someone squeezed a lemon in your mouth.”  
  
“That’s not true”  
  
“Whatever. Look, Toni. There’s nothing going on between me and James, okay? You don’t need to worry about that…”  
  
“I’m not worried…”  
  
“Listen to me, Kroos! You need to get your stuff together and grow some _cojones_ okay? Have you seen those heart eyes James gives you every time you’re in the room?”  
  
“What are you talking about?”  
  
“Do you actually think he wanted some songs for his iPod? He wanted to spend more time with you, you dumbass blonde!”  
  
“He did?”  
  
“Yes! He was actually stuttering in the locker rooms about how to approach you without looking needy. You’re the blindest person on Earth,  I’m telling you!”  
  
Toni just stared at Cristiano like he had a third eye in his forehead.  
  
“I’m serious, Germany. Go make a move. And just one thing” Toni nodded at him to continue “If you hurt him, I’m make you suffer. Got it?”  
  
Toni nodded again and smiled. Cristiano gave him a pat on the back and started to walk away but then turned and called Toni.  
  
“And Germany? I’ll be on the pitch today, so make sure to forget everything and pass me the ball, okay?”  
  
**\----------- *** ------------**  
  
They were seconds away from winning against Atletico. The one team they hadn’t beaten. At the Champions League quarter finals. He had played with Sergio in the midfield and, even when the guy was a defender, he did a pretty decent job. Toni just had to make sure to cover some space and help with the recovery of the ball and that was it.  
  
It only took one crazy good combination between James, Cristiano and Chicharito to put them in the lead. Toni couldn’t even believe it. He stared at the clock and then at the Atletico player that was currently with the ball on his feet and suddenly the referee said it was over. He jumped on top of Sergio of pure joy. **_THEY WON_**. The scream they shared was of relief and happiness. And then Sergio let him go and James came and gave him the biggest hug ever. Toni was kind of glad they won (even more now, of course!)  
  
“We won, Germany!”  
  
“Hell yeah, we won! Great job over there, coffee bean!”  
  
“Same. You were amazing. Sergio too, of course. You guys were amazing”  
  
Toni smiled and they went to greet the Atletico players, the referees and their teammates – including Marcelo and Luka that couldn’t play that game – their joy couldn’t be contained and the mister announced that they were free the next day from training of any sort.  
Toni and James were side by side and smiled at each other when they heard. Toni raised his head and saw Cristiano, Karim and Luka making hand motions at him towards James. _Okay, now or never, I think._  
  
“Hey James?”  
  
“Yes?”  
  
“Since we don’t have training tomorrow, do you want to grab something to eat and maybe go to Parque del Capricho so I can see which  
songs you want for your iPod?”  
  
“Really? You want to do that?”  
  
“Why not? You told me that you wanted to show me that park and you want some new songs. I have time tomorrow since there’s no training but if you don’t want to…”  
  
“Yeah… I mean, yeah I want to…” James was blushing and stuttering even more now. Toni smiled.  
  
“It’s a date then”  
  
_Hell yeah, it’s a date!_ James smiled while nodded and went running to the residency to pick up his things and go home. Cristiano, Karim, Luka and Sami went to Toni and clapped.  
  
“Shut up!” said Toni blushing.  
  
“Took you long enough, Germany” joked Karim while making fake heart eyes at Toni  
  
The rest just laughed while making fun of the way Toni asked James out. But he couldn’t care less.  
  
_He had a date with James Rodriguez._  
  



	2. What could go wrong?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The date was the perfect opportunity to have a nice day with Toni. After all, the German asked him on a date and he was going to make it perfect. I mean... what could go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> James prepares the date with Toni and wonders if he has it all set up properly...  
> *James side of the story this time*

_Date…_

The “d” word. While planning a date, you always thought about what could go wrong and take precautions about it. That was the rational thing to do. Right? But if you are excited enough, sometimes you only care about was to have fun.

James was running up and down his house, picking things and checking bags. Toni was going to meet him at the very beginning of Parque del Retiro. He was sure Toni already went there a couple of times but he still said he wanted James to show him the park, to show him what James loved about it so much. He was going to do it. Even if he couldn’t get out of the house without coming back to get something else.

Toni texted him a few minutes back _“Already on my way there, not getting cold feet, right?”_ and that made him smile. He knew how hard it probably was for Toni to make that huge step and ask him out.

While he was getting in the car, he remembered all those “advices” his teammates gave him when he said at training he wanted to make today special. Some were utterly ridiculous, some were just plain crazy, and only a few of them were actually helpful.

\-------------------*&*--------------------

He was fretting while packing his stuff. He had a date with Toni. He pinched his arm and the pain made him realize it was all real. He wasn’t dreaming it. Okay, he had to make it special. Someone knocked on his door and when he turned around, Cristiano was there with a smile on his face.

“Finally! You two needed to get it together”

“I know you had something to do with it…”

“Who? _Me?_ ” Cristiano acted offended but James knew better “I know, I’m sorry I got in the way, but Toni is so dense he wasn’t going to get it all by himself!” James looked at him with an eyebrow raised “I’m serious, Ras Tas Tas, Sami was thinking of locking you two up in a closet until one of you broke”

“Sami needs a hobby”

“I think so too.” Cristiano smiled “So, you have a plan for tomorrow?” James looked at him again “For your date with Germany?” James shook his head “Nothing at all?” James shook his head again and sat on the bed “Oh, well, there’s always last-minute plans that go smoothly, like the time I managed to fill a hotel room with flowers when I was dating Irina… what a waste of money, by the way. And champagne, there’s always champagne. Or chocolate, because you can’t go wrong with chocolate…”

James head was spinning while Cristiano kept talking. He had to plan something special for Toni but he didn’t saw the blonde as someone who would enjoy a bottle of champagne at ten in the morning. He saw Toni as someone with a simple taste. His favorite color was _white_ for goodness’ sake!

“But I guess it’s up to you, right? You’ll know how to make it special but I tell you: don’t forget the chocolates, James. They are the key to success!” Cristiano patted his arm and left “Have fun and let me know how it went”

James was dizzy. Chocolates? Really? He shook his head to clear it and grabbed his things to finally go home. He knew Toni already left because he said so when he was returning James’ iPod. While leaving his room, he found Isco and the Spaniard clapped him on the back.

“Good job, coffee bean! You got the German blondie!” James stared at him like he was nuts… _He probably was_ “Remember, music, candles, food, chocolates, cake, some beers… You’ll rock it!” He said while walking away.

James kept walking, he really wanted to go home now and sleep. The next day was going to be really great but right now, thinking about what was he going to do, was giving him a headache.

When he almost got to his car, Karim and Marcelo clapped alongside his car. “Now what?” he was annoyed.

“Nothing. Nothing.” Said Karim while raising his hands in surrender “Took you both long enough, that’s all”

“Yeah, I know. And before you – _any of you_ \- asks again, no, I don’t have anything planned, okay?”

“We weren’t going to ask, but since you offered…” He gave Marcelo the worst ‘pissed off’ look he could muster… and it wasn’t really good. “Don’t look at me like that. We just want to help you, Jamesinho!”

“Exactly. This is why you need to keep it low. It’s Toni we’re talking about. He doesn’t want a parade and a hundred flowers. He’s pretty low-key” said Karim smiling “But you know him better than we all do, so, we’re pretty sure you’re going to be just fine”

James smiled. That was the first really good advice someone gave him. Marcelo laughed.

“Yeah, but you have to get chocolate and champagne. It’s a date after all. Maybe some strawberries…”

“What is it with people and chocolate?” asked James annoyed now

“Everyone loves chocolate” said Marcelo while running backwards towards his car on the parking lot “Have fun, irmaozinho! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

Karim shook his head and said “Good luck, James” and got into his car.

He was confused. While Karim was right about Toni being low-key, he was having doubts about everything now. What if he didn’t get chocolate and that was the right thing to do? What if he got champagne and Toni didn’t like it? What if…? _What if?_

His head was throbbing. He got into his car and started the way home. He wanted to have a clear head but it was impossible to do so with all those “advices”. The traffic, to top everything up, was crazier today because of the game. Madrid was a traffic mess. His phone ringed on the passenger seat and, since the traffic didn’t move, he took it to read it. _Wrong decision!_

It was the WhatsApp group of the team. And they were talking about Toni and him. _About their date._

 _We want details tomorrow, huh Germany? Coffee bean?_ Sergio wrote with a lot of smiling faces.

 _We ALL want details_ Dani was having a field day

 _All of you, leave them alone! Or I’ll convince Ancelotti to make you all go to training tomorrow!_ Iker, always the voice of reason.

 _Boring, Iker. So boring!_ Cristiano added, with yawning faces.

 _I hate all of you!_ Wrote James and then threw his phone to the seat again.

Ugh, sometimes he despised all of them. He wasn’t a child, but still they felt the need to embarrass him like a parent. His phone rang again but it was some German song. _Sami_. He had personalized ringtones to every one of his teammates.

 _Don’t listen to any of them, James. You’ll be fine. Toni is a simple guy. Even if I really don’t know him all that well, I spoke to someone who does. He’s waiting for your call. You’ll thank me later._ Next it was a number that, James assumed, was for this person Sami wanted him to talk to.

 _Felix?_ James asked him. Because he was already embarrassed by his teammates, and he didn’t want to be embarrassed by Toni’s brother.

 _No, even if I know that he would help you. It’s Toni’s best friend. One of them, at least. The other wouldn’t help much. Call him when you get home._ Sami answered back. James wasn’t sure he would, but he had to trust Sami on this one.

He got home and took a long shower. That always relaxed him after a game or when things were stressful. After making something light to eat, he went to the living room and stared at the phone, fixing his gaze on Sami’s message and that number. He didn’t have anything to lose. Nothing could be worse than Sergio asking for dirty details over the WhatsApp before the Mister shut them all up.

 _“Hallo?”_ James wasn’t very good in English but he had to try.

“Uh, hi? Sami told me to call this number…”

_“Oh, you’re James. No wonder I didn’t recognize the number.”_

“Who’s this?”

_“Sami didn’t tell you? That bastard. I’m Mario… Mario Götze. He told me your teammates were annoying you because you have a date with Toni and I wanted to help”_

He knew Mario from the TV. Hell, he was the one who scored the winning goal at the World Cup. And he also knew Toni always spoke wonders about the guy.

“Uh, yeah. Okay. As long as it’s not the same kind of help my mates were giving me…”

Mario laughed _“They made you suffer, huh? Sami wanted to ask Mülli for help but it would have been more of the same with him…”_ James shuddered. Thomas Müller, jokester extraordinaire. _“So I offered. And whatever you’re thinking, stop. Toni doesn’t like big extravaganzas. He’s a really simple guy. A walk on the park. Some music. Good conversations. That’s about it.”_

“Are you sure?” James was feeling a little better now

_“Absolutely. Toni is my friend. All I want is to see him happy. And he was very excited to hang out with you the other day. So trust me when I tell you that the simpler the better… that’s it. He doesn’t want a production. He just wants to hang out with you.”_

James smiled. He really liked Mario. “Thanks, Mario. You were really helpful”

_“I’m glad then. Save my number and let me know if you need my help anytime. Any friend of Toni is a friend of mine. Believe me…”_

They said their goodbyes and James was still smiling after that conversation. Just as he was going to bed, his phone ringed once more. The Bernabeu chanting ‘Cristiano Ronaldo… lo lo lo!’ echoed across the room. This couldn’t be good.

 _“Don’t forget the chocolate!”_ Cristiano wrote and James groaned. But he still ordered some chocolate online.

\-------------------*&*--------------------

He didn’t realize he was getting close to Parque del Retiro until he saw Toni with his earphones on his ears moving his head to the beat of the song. James smiled. Suddenly he was really excited for this. He grabbed his messenger bag from the backseat, his phone and exited the car. Toni smiled when he saw him and removed his earphones.

“I thought you were going to leave me here waiting…” Toni said while giving him a hug.

“Nah, I was just picking things here and there. You should see my house, it seems like a hurricane went through it.” Toni laughed.

“Well, Hurricane James is very fun to watch sometimes” James smiled “So, what are we doing today?” James stuttered a bit. He couldn’t get the words out. “Hey, relax. How about you show me the best parts of this park?”

“You haven’t been here before?”

“No, I haven’t.”

James breathed deeply and started the way inside the park. He loved the fountains alongside the park and the way the animals were confident enough to get really close to the people there. Toni even got some seeds to feed the birds. James watched him with a smile on his face. He looked so peaceful there just enjoying the day – even if the weather was a little gloomy – he was glad he listened to Mario instead of his teammates.

They found a bench and went there and James brought out a couple of bottles with orange juice from his bag and offered one to Toni who smiled and watched the people go by them.

“You actually haven’t been here before?” James asked. He was really curious about that now.

“Not with you, no” Toni smiled while answering. James blushed.

“We could have gone somewhere else, you know? We didn’t have to come here”

“Didn’t you say this was your favorite place in Madrid? After the Bernabeu, of course” James nodded “Then we are where we are supposed to be. Don’t worry about it”

James relaxed and smiled “Okay, then. We’ll go somewhere else for lunch” Toni kept watching people “Unless you don’t want to…”

“James, stop worrying about everything and just have fun. If I didn’t want to be here with you, do you think I would have asked you to come here? Just relax and have fun. It should be fun not stressful!”

“It’s just that, I want it to be perfect!”

“And it is so far! Until you worry yourself to death and then I have no date anymore…”

James laughed and Toni smiled even more. Then James remembered he had things to share with Toni on his bag. “Here, I brought some treats since it’s our Free Day today” he pulled out a bag with a Coca-Cola bottle and some chocolate “I know you love soda so…”

“Uh, James… I can’t eat chocolate”

“Wait what? For real?”

“Yeah, when I was a kid, I found a chocolate stash my mom hid on the playroom and I ate it all in less than two hours and I spent the rest of my weekend on the hospital because I kept throwing up. I can’t stand the taste ever since” James was embarrassed now. _Stupid Cristiano with his stupid chocolate theory. Stupid Cris, Marce and Isco!_ “I’m sorry. Thanks for the soda, though. I love it.”

“No problem. I thought chocolate was a must for a date”

“Well, you won’t have to worry about that with me” Toni smiled to make him feel better and he almost did until a rush of cold air made Toni shiver “Damn, it is cold here now”

“Yeah…” he should have thought to bring a scarf when he heard that the news guy said it was going to be very windy and probably rain before midday.

“I hate the cold. I had enough of that in Germany”

“What’s it like in Germany? I haven’t gone there…”

“Like ever?” James shook his head “Really? Well, it’s lovely there. Except for the weather, unless you actually like the cold and perpetual winter, but yeah, it’s really nice”

“Except if you are playing against a German team, right?”

Toni laughed “Yup. Or if you are playing with a German team and you suck. They’re really mean if you’re not on the best level. But it’s a different experience altogether. The weirdest sensation I got playing there was at Dortmund, their fans are so loud and so charismatic you can’t help but love them. They respect a good player and that’s also really nice”

James watched Toni’s face while he spoke of his country “You miss it?”

“The weather? Hell no!” James laughed “A little, yeah. Especially my family. I mean, we lived apart for so many years but, if I had a bad day, I could always call them and they were there for me all the time. Now it’s a little more complicated. So yeah… I miss it sometimes.”

“What about Bayern?”

“I miss my teammates. Mülli, Sunny, Manu, Boa… but the team? No, I don’t think so… I’m happy here”

James wanted to say something else but he saw with the corner of his eye someone move on the far side of the park and heard a click. _Great. Paparazzi!_ “Toni, there’s someone taking pics of us”

“Really? Where?”

“There. On the far corner. We should get moving to the other side. Just in case, you know?”

“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go”

James picked everything up and put it inside his bag once more. He couldn’t believe the freaking paparazzi were there invading their privacy once more.

“James, are you okay?” Toni seemed troubled but kept asking that to James every time he saw the youngster with a scowl after they made sure no one was following them and stood by one of the fountains.

“No… first the chocolate thing and now the paparazzi. I was worried something was going to go wrong and now I ask if, after all this, there’s more that could go wrong. I’m sorry, Toni. This is the crappiest date ever”

“Hey, you didn’t know about the chocolate and the paparazzi wasn’t your fault. Everything is fine. What else could go wrong? Relax!”

 _Wrong thing to ask, Toni_ , thought James when, not only a second later a downpour started and they were instantly drenched. Toni looked to the sky “Okay that could go wrong too. I stand corrected!” the German shouted to the sky and James wanted to crawl in a hole and die there.

“I had planned a lunch, as I told you, but now I’m not sure of anything anymore. We should get going. You brought your car?” James asked while jogging out of the park.

“No, Sami gave me a ride. He thought it would be better like that. I can call him if you like”

James blushed “No, of course not. If you want to go home, I’ll give you a ride”

He unlocked his car and they both went inside where James started the heating immediately. “Who said anything about going home?” asked Toni while James started to drive away.

“This is a disaster. Disaster date!”

“James look at me!” they were on a red light and James looked at Toni. At his red cheeks because of the cold and his shivering hands “I don’t want to go home yet. I’m having a good time. And I’m hungry.”

James looked at him. He didn’t want to leave Toni’s side yet. “Okay, then. I asked around and found the perfect place to have lunch today”

“If you take me to eat Colombian food, you’ll have to tell me how to order because I don’t know a single thing about Colombian food, okay?”

James laughed but didn’t say anything else. If this went well, he would have to thank Luka later. Lukita helped him find this place when he asked him about lunch. He said his wife wanted to try different types of food and this was on the list. He parked the car and turned to see Toni smile so big it looked funny on his face.

“A German restaurant? Really?”

“I know you miss your country. This was the best solution I could come up with!” Toni grinned “I guess you’re the one who’s going to help _me_ order my food”

They went inside and, after realizing they were still drenched, asked for a place at the roofed terrace where they wouldn’t leave wet spots everywhere. Once the waiter brought their menus, James realized a part of this plan he didn’t thought before. _The menus are in freaking German with no translation. Damn you, Luka!_ He heard a soft laugh and saw Toni looking at him from the top of his menu with a smile.

“I feel like an idiot”

“No need to. I feel enough of that every day at training. You need help with your order, though? I’ll be glad to help you…”

“I know. How about this? Pick something for me. That way I won’t look like an idiot trying to pronounce anything”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I trust you.”

Toni smiled and called the waiter. He ordered something James couldn’t even try to pronounce and the waiter smiled. He then asked what they wanted to drink…

“Coca-cola” they both said in unison, which make them _and_ the waiter laugh.

“I’ll be right back with your order, then”

They talked about the next games and how amazing it would be to go to Mallorca after the season ended to just relax. Toni had a place there, and James was planning a couple of weeks of to Colombia to see his sister and his family. The waiter came back with their drinks and food and they kept chatting away. The rain kept falling but James thought they would worry about that later. The food was amazing and the dessert was even better. _Apple strudel_ Toni called it. It was really good. They paid and went to the car again, this time to really go home.

The rain was still going strong and they got drenched once more, James heard a “I hate the cold and I HATE the rain” coming from Toni that made him laugh so hard he was still going at it while getting in the car.

The traffic was awful because of the weather and a ride that would only take them like 20 minutes to do, seem eternal. They were still on the road 30 minutes after leaving the restaurant and James heard a weird noise from his side. He turned to see Toni and almost swore out loud. The German had his arms wrapped around himself and his lips were almost blue from the cold. He was shivering so bad James immediately thought about going to the hospital.

“Oh my God, Toni. Are you okay?” James parked the car to the side of the road and started running through the things he had on his backseat and found a towel, a blanket and a winter jacket.

“I’m… fine… just a… little cold.” The German said while James wrapped him with everything he found and then helping him put on the heavy jacket.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were so cold?” James felt awful and just wanted Toni to be okay.

“I didn’t thought it would be this bad… did I tell you I hate the cold?” James had to laugh at that. Toni was completely crazy sometimes.

“I think you mentioned that before, yes” he saw Toni’s lips go back to almost normal before starting the car again.

They got close to their houses 20 minutes later and Toni already felt a lot better by then. They kept joking about it for a while and Toni kept stuttering like he was cold again which make James smile even more.

James stopped the car at Toni’s house and the German smiled while passing the jacket to James.

“I’m so sorry for every crappy detail about today, Toni. I really wanted to be perfect and we almost ended at the hospital with hypothermia! I promise you that, if you give me a next time, I’ll make it perfect”

Toni laughed and took James chin to make him look at his eyes. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, James. We’re not perfect. We know that, right?”

“But the chocolate… and the papz, and the rain…”

“It was perfect. In its own way. Thanks for this. Every step of it was amazing, even the hypothermia. I loved it”

James grinned. “Okay, then it was perfect. And even if it wasn’t, I loved it”

“Same here.” Toni opened the car door and before he stepped out he turned to look at James one more time “Next time, I’ll plan the whole thing, so you don’t worry yourself to death, okay? And we’ll do something cool. Just no chocolate, cool?”

James laughed “Cool”

“See ya tomorrow at training. And don’t let Cris, Sergio or Marce give you advice anymore, except for football things. They’re idiots sometimes”

James nodded and Toni left jogging to his house. Just at that moment James realized what Toni said…

 _“Next time, I’ll plan the whole thing”_ Next time… okay, so maybe it wasn’t a complete disaster after all… He would wait for the next time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cloudylane said that it would be fun to read about their date... well, it was fun to write it!  
> It was long overdue and I'm sorry. Maybe I'll add some more things to this story with time. If you have any ideas, let me know and I'll see what I can do! ;)  
> Hope you like it.  
> Let me know what you think... (Aren't they cute pies!?)  
> Love,  
> Antonia

**Author's Note:**

> So, someone suggested this prompt on my Tumblr and it was so good, I couldn't stop writing!  
> What started up as a drabble ended up like this! So, anon, hope you like it!  
> You want me to write something, send some prompt to my Tumblr account: https://www.tumblr.com/kroos8shipper/ and I'll try to write something.  
> Hope you guys enjoy it!  
> Love it? Hate it? Let me hear it in the comments!


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